After India, Pakistan protests over power cut

Islamabad: Protests are being staged in several cities and towns of Pakistan over unabated hours-long power cut, Geo News reported on Wednesday.

In the provinces of Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, in particular, people protested by burning tyres, hurling stones at the police, raising slogans against the authorities and blocking roads and highways, Geo News reported on Wednesday.

Reuters

In Peshawar, thousands of people from three villages on the city's outskirts blocked the Circular Road early Wednesday morning.

The demonstrators put barriers and torched tyres to block the road venting their anger against the prolonged unannounced power outages stretching over 20 hours in this scorching summer.

The water supply has also ceased due to continued power cut.

The protesters vowed to continue their protests until the power cut issue was addressed to their satisfaction.

Heavy contingent of police remained deployed for meeting any eventuality.

Meanwhile, the situation in Punjab was reported to be worsening as protests in Lahore and other cities and towns had so far received no sympathetic response either from the provincial or federal governments or other authorities.

Persistent power cut and acute water shortage forced the people to come out on the roads here, news reports said.